Anspach & Hobday Hop Pickers' Pale

Tasting Summary

These comments are the opinion of the individual reviewer and represent what they thought of the beer on a particular day in a particular pub. If a review is less favourable, it may be because the beer suffered somewhere in the supply chain between them and the brewery.

Tonbridge Juddians Rugby Club, Tonbridge, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Hogan Sampling		07 Feb 2026	4th beer of the visit: I accidentally ordered this one by mistake due to the somewhat faint numbering on the festival's tasting notes. I have had this Bermondsey-based brewery's pale a good few times before unlike the other ales I was sampling here and this one certainly did not disappoint.* It presented good head and lacing and almost lasting. A deliberate hazy appearance alongside a fruity hoppy first bite. A host of fruits typical of modern pales rising with orange, pineapple, white grapes and ripe mango all joining in to give a sweet biscuity and spicy hoppy aroma. A hoppy fruitiness also shared with my taste buds care of Citra, Nectaron and Hallertau Blanc hops adding their flavours before sailing out. A touch too citrusy for me and so will now revert back to the more old-fashioned beer styles that are on at this well-stocked festival on its second day with no signs yet of anything running out despite the venue filling up even more throughout my afternoon's visit and coinciding with the Six Nations Rugby tournament, with the England vs. Wales match live on the club's big screens from 16:40. *They now brew at their modern production facility in Croydon which became their main brewing site in 2020. Their specialist brewing is still undertaken in The Arch House in Bermondsey, and the brewery's original home on the so-called Bermondsey Beer Mile, referring to about a mile of railway arches with many deployed for brewing.

The River Ale House, East Greenwich, Greater London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	22 Jan 2026
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	22 Jan 2026
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	21 Jan 2026
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	20 Jan 2026
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	26 Oct 2025
Philip Pirrip		26 Oct 2025	Hazy job - not sure what this ale is supposed to be. Little condition
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	25 Oct 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	27 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	26 Aug 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	25 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	25 Aug 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	12 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	12 Aug 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	11 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	11 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	10 Aug 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	10 Aug 2025
Hogan Sampling		09 Aug 2025	Also fresh on today, care of those thirsty Charlton supporters in earlier to toast Charlton's first game and win in the Championship League and which they have just been elevated into, is this Bermondsey-brewed hazy pale. Head and lacing, very good, and holding it, good. A grapefuity first bite. A pleasant hoppiness winning over assisted by US hops, Citra and Mosaic, and doing battle with the expressive English variety, Ernest. A dry hopped mix sailing off with the odd grapefruit or two gently bobbing along into the sunset.
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	27 Jul 2025
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	27 Jul 2025
Hogan Sampling		26 Jul 2025	Head and lacing, good, lasting, good. This Bermondsey pale, named after hop pickers, came with a bitter sourness on its first bite. A fruitiness rising up. The odd citrus note or two derived from its US hops, Citra and Mosaic, having a swirl on my taste bud's dance-floor. Like a mule, named after the expressive English hop, Ernest, in on the mix, it let out a good fruity-infused spicy kick or two, and aided by a "fruit-forward" yeast, before trotting off with its oaty maltiness into a hazy sunset.
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	07 Jan 2025
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	05 Jan 2025
Hogan Sampling		05 Jan 2025	Good head and lacing on this Bermondsey pale. A sour first hit. A dry mouthfeel with a hoppy aftertaste. A very murky appearance to it.
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	18 Dec 2024
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	17 Dec 2024
Hogan Sampling		17 Dec 2024	Good head and lacing from this Bermondsey-based brewery's pale. A very hoppy mouthfeel and slightly fruity and spicy in the aftertaste.

Claret & Ale (formerly Claret Free House), Addiscombe, Greater London

Nelson Arms, Tonbridge, Kent